Luzerne County Dems make Congressional endorsements

Luzerne Dems Back Holden, Vinsko


No surprise that Bill Vinsko got the nod over Gene Stilp in their contest to take on Freshman Republican Lou Barletta in the 11th CD. Vinsko is the Assistant City Attorney for Wilkes-Barre and has many friends in the county although being the front man trying to explain the million dollar fire truck gift and other recent controversies doesn't help him. My advice to Bill is to leave the employ of the city. He also needs to do better in fundraising.

The news out of the meeting is some contoversy over the vote of the exectutive committee in the 17th CD race. The original headline was the Luzerne County Democrats unanimously endorse Tim Holden but that was not was not the case. The whole county committee didn't vote on this issue just the executive committee. 2nd District Chairman Casey Evans sets the record straight

"It was not a unanimous endorsement. As a voting member of the Luzerne County Democratic Executive Committee, I and many others voted for Matt Cartwright. However, the vote was merely recorded as unanimous because another Committee member and Holden supporter made a motion that it be recorded as such, citing some “past precedent” that no Cartwright supporter seemed to recall ever being used before."

I would have liked to attend this meeting but I was informed after the fact.

We had a Luzerne County Democratic Committee Meeting tonight. Gort, sorry I wasn't able to get in touch with you about it sooner, but when I talked to Kathy Kane last night she seemed apprehensive about letting bloggers cover the meeting.

Phyllis says close the Delaware loophole

HARRISBURG, March 7 – Legislation introduced earlier this year, claiming to close a much-maligned corporate tax loophole, would not only fail to close the so-called "Delaware Loophole," but would also create new loopholes for corporations to avoid paying their fair share of taxes in Pennsylvania, state Rep. Phyllis Mundy and House Democratic leaders said during a Capitol news conference today.

State Rep. Dave Reed, R-Indiana, introduced House Bill 2150 in January, claiming the proposal would close the Delaware Loophole, which allows multistate corporations to avoid paying the Corporate Net Income Tax in Pennsylvania. Mundy and House Democratic leaders, however, said the Reed bill is just "smoke and mirrors" that does little to bring true tax fairness to Pennsylvania.

"A close inspection of Rep. Reed’s House Bill 2150 shows it is nothing more than window dressing," said Mundy, D-Luzerne. "We can have true tax fairness that will level the playing field, but this bill drops the ball."

Mundy said she is drafting legislation that would close the loophole and cut the Corporate Net Income Tax by 30 percent over six years, beginning in 2014.

Multistate corporations avoid paying Pennsylvania's Corporate Net Income Tax by setting up shell companies in Delaware and certain other states to hold copyrights, patents and trademarks. Multistate corporations that do business in Pennsylvania pay the shell company to use the copyrights, patents and trademarks, reducing its taxable income here.

Companies often use Delaware because it does not tax royalty income. Other states, such as Nevada and Wyoming, do not have a Corporate Income Tax.

The Reed bill would still permit companies to deduct expenses for trademarks, copyrights and patents by simply claiming it is for a legitimate business purpose.

"This creates a new loophole, where companies could easily devise a way to claim a legitimate business purpose in order to avoid paying their fair share of taxes in Pennsylvania," said House Democratic Leader Frank Dermody, D-Allegheny.

Other states with similar legislation require the companies to demonstrate why these deductions are legitimate, but the Reed bill would put the burden of proof on the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue to prove they are not valid. The bill presumes that any of these transactions done at market prices is legitimate.

The Reed bill also would permit multistate corporations to claim a credit for taxes paid in other states and deduct that expense in Pennsylvania. And it allows companies to shift income out of state by deducting interest on loans from related companies, another tax avoidance strategy used by corporations.
Mundy's legislation would require corporations to add back expenses from the use of patents, trademarks and copyrights and interest expenses to their taxable income. It also would set a higher standard for allowing these deductions, and would place the burden of proof on the companies to show the deductions are valid.

She said small businesses in Pennsylvania currently pay a higher tax rate, because more than 70 percent of corporations in Pennsylvania use tax-avoidance schemes, such as the Delaware Loophole, to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. While those multi-state corporations pay zero income taxes, Pennsylvania’s small businesses are shouldering a greater share of the tax burden, Mundy said. That is why her bill would reduce the Corporate Net Income Tax to 6.99 percent from its current level of 9.99 percent.

Mundy, in April, introduced legislation (H.B. 1396) to use the combined reporting method to calculate state business taxes. That bill would close a wide array of corporate tax avoidance schemes, including the Delaware Loophole, by requiring businesses and their subsidiaries to jointly file one tax return and pay taxes according to the amount of business activity conducted in Pennsylvania.

Mundy said combined reporting, which is used by 23 other states, is the best and most comprehensive approach to ensuring that all corporations in Pennsylvania pay their fair share of taxes. However, neither Gov. Tom Corbett nor the GOP-controlled House are interested in that approach.

"If we are going to use the narrower approach to closing the Delaware Loophole laid out by Rep. Reed, then we should at least do it right," Mundy said. "My bill does what Rep. Reed’s bill simply doesn’t: It closes the Delaware Loophole and delivers real tax fairness to Pennsylvania."


Mundy aims to close up tax dodge

Alaska and Idaho

Mitt Romney wins both. Much to my chagrin the Aleutian Island vote didn't put Ron Paul over the top. Just call it my My Own Private Idaho.

Ohio for Mitt

Romney 453,430 38%
Santorum 441,501 37%
Gingrich 174,456 15%
Paul 110,516 9%



From First Read

Here are the most up-to-date numbers for ad spending in the Super Tuesday states:
Ohio: pro-Romney $4 million, pro-Gingrich $739,000, pro-Santorum $950,000.
Georgia: pro-Romney $1.5 million, pro-Gingrich $950,000, pro-Santorum $214,000.
Tennessee: pro-Romney $1.3 million, pro-Gingrich $664,000, pro-Santorum $247,000.
Oklahoma: pro-Romney $576,000, pro-Gingrich $422,000, pro-Santorum $182,000.
Idaho: pro-Romney $126,000, pro-Santorum $3,000, pro-Paul $47,000.
Vermont: pro-Romney $61,000, pro-Paul $55,000.

NoDak for Rick

North Dakota is another Rick Santorum win.


Santorum 4,339 40%
Paul 2,938 27%
Romney 2,639 24%
Gingrich 933 9%

Click on the image for the details.

Romney wins New England

Mitt Romney tops the ballot in Vermont with 40% with Rick and Ron Paul coming in with about 25% each. Romney wins his other home state of Massachusetts with 72%. I lived in Massachustetts not long ago and there weren't many Republicans.

Mitt Romney wins Virginia but Ron Paul does better than expected

Mitt Romney won the Virginia primary 59-41 over Ron Paul but because of the inept organizations of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum they didn't make the ballot. Virginia residents Gingrich and Santorum couldn't even vote for themselves. I'll call this a moral victory for Ron Paul. He may get a clear win if we wait for the results from the Aleutian Islands.

Rick Santorum wins Tennessee and Oklahoma

Rick will live beyond Super Tuesday. I thought that Santorum would be out of this after South Carolina but then he won Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri. Tonight he chalks up wins in Oklahoma and Tennessee and is leading in Ohio. With 45% of the vote tallied in Oklahoma with Rick called the winner with 34% of the votes cast. Romney and Gingrich each have about 27% with Ron Paul gathering 10%. In Tennessee he has a 10 point lead over Romney with Newt coming in 3rd.

Newt wins Georgia

44%reporting

Georgia Primary

Updated 9:12 p.m. EST, Mar 6, 2012

Gingrich 204,835 48%
Romney 97,870 23%
Santorum 90,572 21%
Paul 25,933 6%

Newt said in his "victory " speech that he will get gas prices down to $2.50 a gallon. Herman Cain said it should be $2.999. Mississippi and Alabama are next Tuesday and he is looking for wins there.

Ohio exit polls

I'll be live blogging the results from Ohio and the rest of the Super Tuesday results as they come in tonight with less than flattering pics of the winner in each contest. If you have any favorite images of the Prez candidates please leave a link in the comments or send me an email.

POLL CLOSING TIMES

7 p.m. – Virginia, Vermont, Georgia

7:30 p.m. – Ohio

8 p.m. – Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Tennessee

10 p.m. – North Dakota caucus results expected

11 p.m. – Idaho caucus results expected

1:15 a.m. – Alaska caucus results expected

A trust betrayed

Trust, indeed.....-Kayak Dude


North Branch Land Trust opens door to drilling


In July 2010, the board adopted a policy on subsurface fossil fuels and mineral extraction. It included a clause reading, "Due to the current status of state and federal laws and regulations governing the industry and the current conditions in the industry in general, NBLT will not consider any form of lease agreement for the extraction of fossil fuels, minerals or any other subsurface resource under any NBLT owned properties at this time."
A few weeks ago, the trust's board changed the policy to exclude that clause.

In a turnaround from its earlier stance, the North Branch Land Trust has opened the door to natural gas drilling beneath the Wyoming County property the trust pledged to conserve.
The trust's executive director says the change allows the nonprofit organization to keep drilling companies off the surface of the land. But one of the trust's founders believes leasing pristine land for subsurface drilling, a practice that has the potential to ruin it and neighboring land, is unethical.

Childhood friend and family (animal) doctor Dr. Douglas Ayers feels betrayed.


"I think it's extremely immoral for anyone, a private citizen, even someone who's going to lose their property, to allow gas drilling if there is a chance they will damage their neighbor's property," Ayers said. "I would rather lose my property than hurt other people....
"One thing is not debatable: Ernie Howland would never approve of what they're doing. Period," he said. "He trusted us because we were a land trust. Not a gas trust. A land trust."

"I ruined this organization and I didn't even know it," Ayers said of allowing pro-drilling people on what he characterized as a previously "green" board. "I didn't know gas would be discovered."


As Otter said in Animal House:

You fucked up... you trusted us!

Phil Scollo running hard in the 10th CD

Barring some scandel incummbent Republican Congressman Tom Marino should win reelection in the Pennsylvania 10th Congressional District especially after his district was made more Republican by registration after the recent gerrymander.

Phil Scollo is the Democrat in the race will have none of that and is assembling a top notch team headed by Vincent Rongione who was the campaign manager for Chris Carney's successful 2008 reelection campaign and previously served as the the finance director in 2006. They just launched the campaign website with the slogan "a businessman, not a politician." I have to admit if I hear one more candidate say government should be run like a business I'm going to throw up. Government is not a business, government is government with different goals than a business. He stayed away from that in his announcement.

Why I’m Running for Congress

For too long we have seen a system rigged against the little guy.

We need a representative in Washington who will stand up and fight for those of us who don’t have high-powered lobbyists on their payroll...While I have experienced much satisfaction in the business world, I have also witnessed the excesses and greed that brought the financial industry to its knees along with a shocking complicity on the part of government.

Citizens, without regard to affiliation, have the right to be upset, even angry at the incompetence and complicity of their representatives.

Like him on Facebook

Speaking of scandals Tom Marino has some splaining to do although he was able to dodge questions in 2010 about his connections to Louis DeNaples. People have short memories, I don't.

Tom Marino was able to gloss over his connections to convicted criminal Louis DeNaples in the 2010 wave election of 2010. He did a great job in the debate with Chris Carney calling him a "liar" that Chris didn't expect and didn't adaquatly responed. Hopefully people will pay more attention this time.

Tom Marino's Alleged Mob Ties Won't Keep Him Out Of Congress

As a US attorney, Marino gave a reference to his "close friend" Louis DeNaples, a convicted felon his office investigated for potential mob ties. When the Department of Justice reportedly launched an investigation into the reference, Marino resigned, and got a job working as DeNaples' in-house lawyer.

From that left wing rag Redstate in 2010:


Meet Tom Marino, who will certainly be in the DCCC’s crosshairs if he wins the GOP primary in Pennsylvania’s 10th to go up against Rep. Chris Carney (proud member of the Stupak Sellout crowd instrumental in voting ObamaCare into law last week). Marino, a former US Attorney, has his own shady dealings which will make for good campaign fodder in the general.During Marino’s tenure as US Attorney, local businessman Louis DeNaples was under investigation by the US Attorney’s Office for his ties to William D’Elia, head of the Bufalino crime family. It seems DeNaples lied about his relationship with D’Elia to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board when applying for a licence for the Mount Airy Casino. Listed as a personal reference on that same application was none other than US Attorney Tom Marino, the very man running the office investigating DeNaples’ organized crime ties.The Department of Justice got wind of the conflict of interest and ordered Marino off the investigation, and shortly after the media broke the story he resigned his post… and went to work for Louis DeNaples. (The charges were eventually dropped when DeNaples agreed to place the casino project in the name of a family member.)The reality is just as bad as–if not worse than–the optics of this scandal. Do we really want someone like Marino representing the GOP in what will be a battleground district this fall? Rep. Carney, the Pelosi-enabling, abortion-funding “Blue Dog” Democrat from a conservative district in northeastern Pennsylvania will have a hay day with Marino’s record. I’ve spoken with people in the district who feel uneasy about Marino and will likely just stay at home rather than having to choose between him and Carney.One of the keys to a Republican resurgence is not only ensuring we have credibly conservative candidates running for office, but also candidates with a personal and professional record we can be proud of and defend. Tom Marino doesn’t fit the bill.

The beat goes on


Then this dropped into my inbox yesterday. I have't checked out the claims in this email but it looks like a DCCC or campaign hit piece.




Thought this might interest you...

Background on John Moran:

John D. Moran, Jr. is the President and CEO of Moran Industries and President of many other companies in Central Pennsylvania. One of the other companies he founded is JDM Consultants/Penn Strategies a political consulting and lobbying firm. Their website says they are a "one-stop shop for assistance with government relations."


Moran is a large Republican donor, who briefly explored running against U.S. Senator Bob Casey in 2012. In the last 3 federal cycles a total of $43,993 to federal candidates and
the NRCC (all GOP except Specter after his party switch). (OpenSecrets.org)
Marino-Thompson-Moran Timeline:
2010 Election-Tom Marino for Congress campaign managed by John Moran & his consulting/lobbying firm (FEC Records, JDM Consultants/Penn Strategies website clients list and case study)
2010 FEC Cycle-John Moran donates $2100 to Marino and $4800 to Thompson
Fall 2011-Marino & Thompson write a letter to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood requesting federal funds for fixes to the Lycoming County Railroad's bridge. (Sun-Gazette 3/1/12, Marino Press Release 2/29/12)
Late October 2011-Moran's consulting/lobbying firm, JDM Consultants, paid over $12,500 for ongoing 'Campaign Management Fees' by Marino for Congress (Marino's most recent FEC report)
December 2011-Moran Industries bids $12.5 million to the SEDA-COG Joint Rail
Authority properties, which include the Lycoming County Railroad. The $12.5 million bid is called "a low-ball offer for sure" by the SEDA-Council of Governments’ Joint Rail Authority Chairman Jerry Walls. (Daily Item 12/22/11, SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority website)
Early February 2012-Moran Industries raises their bid to $30 million for the SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority properties (Daily Item 2/7/12)
Late February-Marino & Thompson jointly announce $2.4 million grant to replace the Lycoming County Railroad's bridge (Marino Press Release 2/29/12)
Additional Moran connections to local and state legislative officials involved in the railroad deal in the region:

- Dennis Shaffer, a SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority board member representing Union County, is employed by Moran as a terminal manager at the former Celotex site in Sunbury, has been the most vocal for privatization. He denies an conflict of interest exists. (Daily Item 12/22/11)

- Former State Rep. & former Northumberland County Commissioner Merle Phillips, along with then- and current-Commissioner Vinnie Clausi, announced an effort to look in to privatizing the rail system. Moran was also a big donor to Phillips before Phillips left office and Phillips was a client of Moran's consulting form. (Daily Item 12/22/11, JDM Consultants/Penn Strategies website client list)

- Phillips' successor State Representative Lynda Schlegel Culver has worked for Moran as a consultant and is a client of his consulting firm. (Daily Item 12/22/11, JDM Consultants/Penn Strategies website client list)

- Culver said she wasn’t aware Moran was interested in owning the railroad, but views it as a “natural step” for his growing business ventures in warehousing and distribution for the transportation industry. “I think John Moran and Commissioner Phillips would be highly insulted” by any link between the two in regard to the purchase proposal, she said. (Daily Item 12/22/11)

- Current Lycoming County Commissioner Tony Mussare is another client of Moran's consulting/lobbying firm. (JDM Consultants/Penn Strategies website client list)
Citations and links to more information:
Sun-Gazette 3/1/12 - http://www.sungazette.com/page/content.detail/id/575207/-2-4-million-to-replace-bridge.html?nav=5011
Marino Press Release 2/29/12 - http://marino.house.gov/press-release/marino-thompson-announce-24m-grant-lycoming-county
Daily Item 2/7/12 - http://dailyitem.com/0100_news/x741509663/Moran-Industries-raises-rail-line-bid-to-30-million
Daily Item 12/22/11 - http://dailyitem.com/0100_news/x1477830037/Moran-Industries-bids-12-5-million-for-local-rail-lines
JDM Consultants/Penn Strategies website - http://www.jdm-pennstrategies.com/
SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority website/Railroad Properties - http://www.sedacograil.org/Pages/JRA%20System.aspx
Wikipedia Entry for Lycoming Valley Railroad, notes bridge damaged in 2011 floods - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lycoming_Valley_Railroad
Moran recent federal donations/OpenSecrets.org - http://www.opensecrets.org/indivs/search.php?name=moran%2C+john&state=PA&zip=&employ=moran&cand=&c2012=Y&c2010=Y&c2008=Y&sort=N&capcode=gcw3v&submit=Submit+your+Donor+Query
Marino's most recent FEC report, distributions list - http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/dcdev/forms/C00475145/761812/sb/ALL

Spring Training

Forget the groundhog or the equinox, the first sign of Spring is Baseball! Today there was the first game between the Phillies and Yankees and the hope is to see these two teams play again in October.

I've been a bit of a slacker on blogging lately but I hope to return to normal this week.

So what's happening.

Mitt Romney won Michigan, on to Super Tuesday

There is a new Luzerne County manager who is looking for good pizza

Rush said something outrageous again but this time it may cost him

Phil Scollo looks like a real contender in the 10th CD

Only in Wilkes-Barre could a gift of a million dollars blow up into a controversy

Don Bailey for Attorney General

Former Congressman and Auditor General Don Bailey is running for PA Attorney General. He represented the 21st CD for 2 terms from 1979 to 1983 then lost to John Murtha after his district was merged with Murtha's after the 1982 redistricting. He made a comeback winning the 1984 Auditor General race but then lost a series of elections getting beat in the 1986 Senate primary then lost his bid for reelection to Barbara Hafer in 1988. He tried to regain the office in 1992 but lost in the primary then lost a bid for governor in 1998. Since then he has been a civil rights attorney.

Third Democrat emerges in Pa. attorney general race


"I have simply become fed up with what I feel is a pervasive level of corruption in Pennsylvania," he said in an interview Tuesday. "The Attorney General's Office has been a do-nothing office for too long."...Bailey acknowledged his late entrance could relegate his candidacy to long-shot status....His Harrisburg-based civil-rights law practice has occupied most of his time during the last decade, he said. Focused on representing whistle-blowers, Bailey describes himself as an "equal-opportunity suer."

PoliticsPA: But he’s also run into some professional trouble. He came close to being disbarred in 2011, accused by the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of bringing frivolous lawsuits.

I don't think he will have much of an impact on the race as Patrick Murphy and Kathleen Kane have been running for months and have banked some big bucks. He's counting on name recognition but hasn't won an election in 28 years so only old political junkies like me and the Yonk even remember the guy.

1000 words

Why Rick lost Michigan

Mailloux and McCabe out

Pete Mailloux is a casualty of the hash that the Harrisburg Republican's made of reapportionment. A W-B city employee challenged his petitions because he doesn't live in the 121st HD. Mailloux conceded the point and dropped out of the race. Barring a 3rd party or Independent candidate getting enough signatures by August 1st Democratic incumbent Eddie Day Pashinski will be the only name on the ballot in November.

On the west side Dem Asst. DA Frank McCabe only got 325 signatures on his petitions that were challenged by Charles Jackson of West Wyoming and Anthony Perzia of Luzerne. The rule of thumb is to get twice as many signatures than you need to ward off challenges because there will always be something wrong. In a state rep race you need 300 but it's harder than you think to gather them especially when you get a late start. McCabe decided not to fight his way on to the ballot. It's doubtful a 3rd party candidate will get into this race as Libertarian Tim Mullen who ran last time was at Republican Aaron Kaufer's kickoff event and the local Greens want to save the world but can't field candidates in local elections. Right now it looks like long time Democratic incumbent Phyllis Mundy will face Young Republican Aaron Kaufer in the fall.

Area House hopefuls pull petitions

PA Attorney General endorsements

The torrent of Patrick Murphy endorsements was countered by Kathleen Kane in this email:
.

SCRANTON, PA -- Kathleen Kane, career prosecutor and Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania Attorney General, received the unanimous endorsement of the Beaver County Democratic Committee at a meeting held Thursday, February 23rd. The vote tally was 129-0, a resounding vote of confidence in Kathleen Kane’s prosecutorial experience and fitness for the Office of Attorney General, and a stunning rebuke of Democratic Primary challenger Patrick Murphy, who, as has been reported in recent news stories, never tried a case in Pennsylvania’s courts.

.
This was in response to the SEIU picking a candidate:


.
My father was a member of a union, the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police, for 22 years, so this endorsement is especially meaningful", Patrick Murphy said. "I have always fought to protect working families and the rights of workers, and as Attorney General I will always enforce the law fairly to protect working middle class families."

.
Kane sent out a full throttled defense of women's health issues that Mrs. G and the rest of the women in my life echoed:


.
Dear Gort ,
When I travel around the state, people are surprised to learn that not only has a woman never been elected Attorney General of Pennsylvania, but no woman has even run for the Attorney General nomination of a major party in our state. And Pennsylvania has been ranked 46th in terms of women holding elective office - only 17% of the office holders in this state are women.

.
To make matters worse, the Republican-led House Oversight Committee held a hearing on women’s health care and the chairman of the committee, tea party Republican Daryl Issa, decided that the most qualified people to testify in the hearing were all male. Not a single woman was invited to sit on the panel and testify.

.
More appalling than that was the recent comments by one of Senator Santorum’s top fundraisers, Foster Friees, suggesting that “gals” might want to hold an aspirin between their knees as a birth control device. This recent assault on women's health by exploitative, out-of-touch tea party Republicans is especially disturbing because, in tough economic times, women need to know that they can provide for their families' and their own health without undue burdens being placed on them.As a woman and a mother, I am shocked and offended by the extreme right wing's assault on women’s health care.As Attorney General, I can and will do something about this. One of the reasons I am running for the office of Attorney General is to do what I have always done - stand up for people who don’t have a voice.If tea party leaders refuse to let women testify about women’s health issues, it’s clear that women aren’t being heard.I believe that our party does best when it's inclusive and runs a balanced, diverse ticket. This year, we will see what happens when Democrats have a choice of nominating a candidate who, yes, is a woman, but more importantly is the most qualified candidate, a seasoned prosecutor who has prosecuted more than 3,000 cases and has more than 100 times the experience as the other Democrat in the campaign.If you agree, I urge you to get involved with my campaign for attorney general and help me put an end to the good ol' boy network that believes it knows and can dictate what is in the best interests of women.


.

State Rep candidates petitions challenged

It looks like that the election for the Pennsylvania state legislature will use the districts in place since 2001 but that could change. The Legislative Reapportionment Commission made a total hash of the process by waiting too long to approve new maps that were thrown out out by the PA Supreme Court. Drawing new maps and allowing for the public comment period then challenges would push the primary beyond April 24th. One option would to have the federal primary on that date and then have a separate primary for state offices later. That would be confusing and expensive and not even the Republican leaders in Harrisburg want to do that.

Senate GOP leader: Not practical to postpone election for redrawing of districts

Republican Pete Mailloux of Mountaintop circulated petitions based on the new map but if the 2001 district lines are used he doesn't live in the 121st HD now represented by Democrat Eddie Day Pashinski. According to the PA Dept of State his petitions are being challenged by Louis Lau.

The surprise in the 120th HD was Asst. Luzerne County DA Frank McCabe filed to take on Phyllis Mundy in the Democratic primary. His petitions are being challenged by Charles Jackson and Anthony Perzia. Both candidates are from Kingston so there is no residency issue. Aaron Kaufer is the only Republican on the ballot.

I asked Phyllis Mundy what she thought of a primary challenge. Her response:

I welcome all challengers. I am confident that my hard work and dedication to the best interests of the average, hard working citizen in my district and in Pennsylvanian will win me reelection.

Always classy, that's why she is my 2nd favorite state rep.

Comments

Blogger recently decided to use the captcha system to verify and annoy commenter's on this site and the rest of the world of scribes that uses Blogger. It is commonly used on many commercial sites such as Ticketmaster that has frustrated me when I'm trying to buy something. Please don't tell Dan Mueser that I buy things online. The regulars over at LuLac are bitching about it and I have received remarks on why this used to be such a great forum for discussion but has slacked off lately so that may part of it. The old word verification worked just fine in my opinion in keeping the spammers away. Occasionally one or two spam comments would slip through but was immediately deleted as soon as I spotted it.

In the past I have taken the word verification off but then got swamped by the spammers. So you have live with it my dears readers and would be commenter's like the new Facebook Timeline requirement that makes it harder to read your friends updates.

Change is not always good but it is the only constant.

The alternative the Yonk came up with

It appears my blogger set up is asking for multiple verifications. Sometimes this can be frustrating. I tried it the other day on Gort 42 and gave up. If you are having a posting problem, e mail me through the blog, or at my e mail address yonkstur@aol.com or my Facebook Page. Here’s the link:http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1612355787 Just put in the message line or Facebook message: “For LuLac posting”. Sorry for the inconvenience.

I also got shot down on LuLac so you can always email me at gort42@yahoo.com or Facebook http://www.facebook.com/gort.fortytwo#!/gort.fortytwo

Death to spammers.

Free Ride

Looking over the candidate roster for the upcoming State Senate and House elections I was struck by how many incumbents will not face a challenger in the primary or general. That might change as the independents and 3rd party candidates have until August 1st to circulate petitions so a handful of Greens and Libertarians may still make the race. I always want a choice in an election but I realize it is a big decision to run for office and put up with the aggravation of press scrutiny, unfair attacks and snarky bloggers.

Capitol Ideas did the math

It'll Be A Lonely Primary For A Lot Of Lawmakers This Year.

if we're counting correctly, it would appear that seven of 25 state senators up for re-election this year are running without primary or general election opposition...In the House,at least 69 of 203 members are running without primary or general election opposition.

Locally it looks like that Karen Boback (R-117) and Mike Carroll (D-118) will have a free ride but that could change in the 117th.

Jim explains how the Supreme Court decision threw a monkey wrench into the process.

As to uncontested races... I think the redistricting fiasco played a part in this. I have to wonder how many people simply decided not to run due to the uncertainty about what district they were going to be in. I'm still waiting to see where we folks in Plains end up: the 121st or the 118th. Redistricting added a whole layer of complication to this year's petition season.